I’d help Kiva!

Kiva is one of our favorite charities, and they are in the running to win $1 million in the Chase Community Giving contest. This contest is on Facebook – all you have to do is log in and vote. Click here! Voting ends on Friday, January 22!

We love Kiva because they support low-income entrepreneurs around the globe. Anyone with an internet connection can lend money to a basket weaver in Bangladesh or a goat farmer in Ghana. These small, micro-loans help the entrepreneurs obtain the necessary capital to launch their businesses which, in turn, enables them to escape chronic poverty. Let’s help Kiva change the world!

A note from Kiva:
“Every day Kiva connects over 3,000 people with more than 700 low-income entrepreneurs around the world. To help us expand our reach and continue doing this, we need your vote on Facebook now! Winning the Chase Community Giving challenge would enable Kiva to make critical investments in staff to strengthen and expand Kiva’s Field Partner network while building and improving the Kiva website to better educate, connect, and serve Kiva lenders. By investing in Kiva’s unique model, we can generate about $10 in loans... Continue Reading

Katie Visco is a rockstar.

From March to December 2009, she ran the 3,132 miles between Boston and San Diego. I met her in March of last year, a few weeks before she started her journey. She was exactly as she seems in the below video – a super happy, motivated, inspiring woman. But why on earth would you want to run across the US? Her goal with her trans-America run was threefold. First of all, it has been a longtime dream of hers to run across the country, and she knew the time was right for her to go for it. Plus, she wanted to serve as a source of inspiration to others that you can fulfill your dreams – if you run after them. Additionally, she was raising funds to support Girls on the Run, a group that “encourages preteen girls to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running.”

I love Katie’s heart and determination. She triumphed over so many daunting challenges: training for such an epic event, the logistics of staging a cross-country run, weather unpredictability and finding places to stay along the way. And even in the end, when her knee stubbornly refused to allow... Continue Reading

One of the best parts about going to events and doing shows is the other cool vendors you meet. A quick camaraderie forms as you marvel over each others’ products, creativity, and plain ol’ gumption.

Ms. Sarah Love is one of the shining stars we met at EcoGift in December 2008. Sarah makes all sorts of lovely things, including this amazing calendar. I got one of her 2009 calendars from her when we were at the show. Each month featured one of her drawings paired with an inspiring message, such as “Innumerable blessings are constantly flowing through your life.” Plus, each day of the week has another inspiring mini-message like “Smile at strangers.” I loved it and promptly bought her 2010 calendar, sight unseen, when it became available. Imagine my surprise and utter delight when I opened this year’s calendar to discover that it is filled with…affirmations! And not only that, a few of them are similar to the affirmations on our shirts (“I am love,” “I am joyous,” “I am free”). Talk about a kindred spirit!

I know that there are some friends of mine and people I’ve met who can’t fathom why you’d possibly want to... Continue Reading

Seriously, I dare you not to smile while watching this video. Here’s to brightening your day…

Yesterday I heard the Sarah McLachlan song World on Fire. I hadn’t heard it in quite a while, and I remembered how much I love it. I then found the video online today, and was surprised because I don’t think I ever saw it before! The video has a powerful impact and got my gears turning. As I enter this new year…new decade…what am I going to do, as a citizen of this planet, to help those who weren’t blessed enough to be born into my circumstances? How can I more effectively use my time and money to have a greater positive impact this year? Will I volunteer more? Yes. Will I donate more? Yes. And for anyone who is short on time, money or both – give what you can. A little goes a long way.

We’re all on the same team, folks, playing together on planet Earth. How can you best support your teammates? Do you have a favorite charity? What causes are you passionate about? Where do you think you would enjoy volunteering? Do you plan to spend more time with family and friends? And whatever you do, whomever you help – don’t forget that the ripple... Continue Reading

Ok, its time I share the love. Sometimes we read a book, see a movie or have a conversation that alters the course of our life dramatically. Whoa. Isn’t it exciting to think one of those life altering events could be just around the corner for you? So one such moment for me was reading, or I should say listening to the audio version of, The 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss. I was given the copy at a time when I’d been going through the motions at 9 to 5 jobs for a few years. The voice in my head that said I didn’t want to do this anymore was getting louder and louder, difficult to ignore. But I didn’t know what else to do. Everyone around me seemed to think this was the right path, the responsible path. I needed new insight, and I needed something practical, not just theoretical.
I’m thinking about this book particularly now because I think of what an amazing turn my life has taken in the two years since I first read it. I was at a dinner party last night chatting... Continue Reading

Snow falls in thick, white drifts on one of the longest nights of the year. A light shines in the heart of Brooklyn as 150 souls gather to celebrate the launch of UniTribe, a group seeking to “connect, collaborate and co-create with existing networks and communities of all cultures, sub-cultures, spiritual practices and generations.” Folks journey in from the cold to a second story loft filled with twinkling psychedelic lights, a jungle of vegetation, transcendental artwork and a blow your face off sound system. The stage was set for a special evening.
We knew from the moment we watched the promotional video that this was going to be a special night. Reading the UniTribe manifesto was like finding a soul mate on Match.com. UniTribe seeks to create “a culture of love and positive change.” Just like us! It sounds like a lofty goal, right? But I can see how its possible with events like this. I had so many interesting conversations, met so many truly kind people and felt completely free to express myself. We warmed up to the sounds of Dalanshare. We witnessed mind blowing Continue Reading

We humans are social creatures. We like to connect with people we share something in common with and we tend to organize ourselves into all types of groups, or, teams. Besides just sports teams, we’re members of countless other types of teams throughout our lives. We’re often on teams at work. You might consider members of your church to be a team. Your family is a team. Political parties are teams. And even though I haven’t read Twilight yet, apparently much of America is either on Team Edward or Team Jacob. Teams are everywhere, people.

The trick is, though, that for the teams that are truly important to us, we should commit to them fully and work hard to support them. Let’s say your family is your most important team. What can you do to be a better team member? Can you carve out more time with them? Can you make the time you do share more meaningful? Your friends are undoubtedly an important team. Can you text them less and talk more? What about your boyfriend/girlfriend/partner/spouse – when was the last time you did something spontaneously romantic? Or something spontaneously unromantic (like cleaning the bathroom or the garage)? Not... Continue Reading